Conceptual Alternatives Summary

The consultants presented all three conceptual alternatives in May 2004, during a series of open sessions held on campus over the course of a day. Rather than a way to determine which alternative was more popular, the sessions were de-signed to spark discussion of the opportunities and constraints that came to light through exploration of various elements and relationships. The follow-up survey (Appendix A4) further clariﬁed key components of each alternative and allowed for more-extensive feedback from participants.

Campus participants also had access to an interactive website over the summer where they could exchange ideas with others and post messages regarding their own thoughts on the Master Plan. This communication tool generated relatively few postings over three-and-a-half months. Comments generally supported continued preservation of the Cofrin Arboretum, a strong component in each of the three conceptual alternatives.

Parking Streets

In the conceptual alternatives stage of the planning process, the concept of parking streets was formulated to solve some parking expansion issues while creating a finer mesh of campus roadways and controlling traffic speeds. Although the concept did not continue to evolve during the remainder of the process, the consultants still feel that it is a viable alternative to the expansion and construction of traditional surface parking lots.